The Big C's

In preparation for our trip to Quebec, we are learning about early Canadian History. I taught my children and grandchildren the following poem(Read: fourteen hundred and ninety-two):

In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.
In 1497, Cabot decided cod fishing was heaven!
In 1534, Cartier erected a cross onshore.
In the year 1608, Champlain built a fort at the river's gate.

We talked about how the early explorers would sail into unknown waters, with no means of communication. They had no cellphones, no satellites, no tvs... no way of knowing what was ahead or what was happening in their home countries.

We read stories about all of the men listed above. We learned about cod fishing off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland; about the St. Lawrence River and the Gaspe Peninsula. We talked about Tadoussac, the Saguenay River, and beluga whales. We learned about scurvy and vitamin C, and about the Huron, Algonquin, and Iroquois Indians. I think the grandchildren's favourite story was the one of Pilotte, the little dog who would scout for Iroquois who might attack the little fort at Ville-Marie.

What a rich history we have in Canada! It will be such fun to go to Quebec and see some of the areas we are learning about.